Wilton P&Z begins talks about site coverage

Published 9:29 am, Thursday, July 30, 2015

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Wilton Town Hall

Wilton P&Z begins talks about site coverage

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WILTON — The Planning and Zoning Commission — that will not meet again until Sept. 15 — began discussions on an amendment to town zoning regulations regarding area/bulk requirements for industrial zones at the public hearing portion of its regular meeting on Monday night.

Bob Nerney, director of planning and land use management, helped explain the issue after it was continued until a very busy Sept. 15 meeting.

“In our design enterprise districts, zoned DE5 and DE10, we have certain building coverage requirements,” Nerney said. “Say a lot is five acres, we have limitations on the footprint coverage. It cannot exceed 20 percent, and that includes any building, and parking garages are considered buildings. Coverage is capped at 20 percent.”

At the meeting, attorney Casey Healy, of the firm Gregory and Adams, said Wilton is “at the low end at 20 percent” among area towns.

This issue stems from the recent trend of streamlined office workspaces.

“We’re talking about the dynamics of office buildings — there are more people working in less space,” Nerney said. “This is the result of the electronic age, computers, and more people working in tighter spaces. That creates more demand for parking. (Wilton) is not like a big city where you can take the 8:15 to the city.”

With apologies to Bachman Turner Overdrive, Nerney said the amendment seeks to increase the footprint coverage to allow for more parking.

“We want to allow this cap to increase to 23.5 percent for parking garages, if they meet the requirement for no more space than 1,000 square feet of gross floor area in the building served,” Nerney said. “The minimum lot must be five or 10 acres. Other towns allow higher maximum building coverage. Wilton is on the low end at 20 percent.”

Another 1.5 percent would simplify the process, according to Nerney.

“We suggested raising the number, and the staff suggested the applicant come back with a flat 25 percent,” Nerney said. “This would be for increased building or parking, or a combination of both. That way the town doesn’t have to analyze how it’s used.”

Nerney does not see this as a drastic change, and it is another step forward for attracting business to Wilton.

“I don’t see this as a radical change,” Nerney said. “This is easier to work with. These discussions are to increase building coverage in DE5 and DE10 sites only. These are areas we’re trying to cultivate economic development for other uses. In Wilton the word for corporate is ‘industrial.’ We do have some manufacturing, but the lion’s share tends to be office space.”